Oakwood accident gridlocks city traffic

Oakwood — A tractor-trailer lost 100 gallons of fuel after colliding with a village fire truck on Interstate 271 under the Alexander Road bridge Aug. 16, and the 1 p.m. accident led to gridlocked traffic in Twinsburg for at least five hours.

There were no injuries in the crash, according to an Oakwood officer.

“The biggest deal was the fuel was leaking and fuel is flammable,” said Macedonia Fire Lt. Paul Celinski, who was at the scene.

Celinski said there was a good chance something could have set off a blaze.

“You would have seen that big ball of fire. A large, vaporous explosion could have occurred,” he said.

The crash occurred just north of where I-271 and I-480 merge, said Macedonia Police Lt. Vince Yakopovich, and closed the northbound I-271 and I-480 lanes for about five hours. An Oakwood police dispatcher said the accident occurred a little before 1 p.m. and the roads reopened around 6:20 p.m...................